Days after Tartarus
by Matanator
Summary: Percy and Annabeth have returned from Tartarus, but beneath their happy visage, their cheerful mask, lies a sadder, more sinister story. Percabeth. Now a Oneshot series with fun and fluff included.
1. Days After Tartarus

Alex Morrison was what some would call a nerd or a geek but he didn't really consider himself to be either of those. Sure he was smart and dived into books and had glasses, but he wasn't about to start quoting Star Trek and make references to Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy.

He was a perfectly normal albeit smarter than average guy, dark brown hair, warm brown eyes hidden behind wire-framed glasses, a little shorter than most his age and a tad bit scrawny.

At school he was ignored by most, but a few of the meaner jocks that probably needed to compensate for something made themselves feel big by... not exactly bullying, but making life just that much more difficult to deal with. A shoulder here, paper balls thrown there, books knocked out of his hands as he passed them in the halls.

Alex had learned to deal with it, not retaliating but he generally tried to avoid them. That was, of course until Annabeth stood up for him.

Annabeth... amazingly beautiful with her honey-blonde hair in princess curls running down her back, her startling grey eyes that constantly analysed and calculated everything she saw, her fit and toned body with gorgeous long legs she was not afraid to show yet also didn't really put much effort about how she looked, yet she always looked perfect. In addition to how good she was already sounding like, she was incredibly intelligent. Top of the class in all her subjects, ace-ing each of her tests.

With the whole package of looks and smarts, anyone would have become arrogant, snobbish and stuck up. Not Annabeth. Far from it, Annabeth was the kindest and sweetest person you could meet. Well... to most people if you didn't try to hit on her. Unavoidably, with her looks, she gets a lot of attention from a lot of the guys at school. She fends them off with the claim of having a boyfriend, but most of them think it's just an excuse. Even if it were true that she did indeed have a boyfriend, it wasn't going stop the more... _forward_... ones.

But anyway, when Annabeth stopped those jocks from bullying him further, he may have developed a crush on her.

As he walked to his locker after his Ancient Greek class he was a little nervous but a little excited as well. Today, they had gotten a partnered assessment for Ancient Greek. To his (in his opinion) infinite luck, he was partnered with the one and only, Annabeth Chase.

Alex was broken out of his thoughts when he heard a heavily exasperated sigh followed by a thump, a very loud thud and a cry of pain. Looking around, he saw Annabeth standing over one of the school jocks, who was lying flat on his back groaning in pain, clutching his stomach. Alex could guess the jock was one of those guys who would be a little too forward with Annabeth.

And that was also another thing to add to the long list of things amazing about Annabeth. She wasn't the stereotypical 'damsel in distress'. She could, and would, shut you down hard in the most vicious ways, either verbally or physically.

"Stop bothering me." She said in an exasperated voice. She didn't even sound angry, merely annoyed.

Alex watched as she stepped over the jock, as calm as can be, and started waking over to where he was. She gave him a smile that made his heart flutter.

"H-hey" he said, stuttering nervously fidgeting with his hands. It's hard not to be when your crush was standing in front of you smiling radiantly.

"Hey, Alex. I know we just got it today, but would you mind spending maybe an hour to get the Greek assignment started? I don't like to procrastinate with these things."

"U-uh... Yeah... Of course we could." Alex mentally cursed in his head.

_'Good job Alex, chicks totally dig stuttering fools... Get it together!'_

"Awesome!" Annabeth smiled her brilliant smile again. "I was thinking we could go back to my house. I have all my resources there, if that's fine with you?"

"S-sure" Alex took a breath to calm his nerves, "I have most of my Greek stuff with me in my locker anyway, so your house sounds good. Though I'll need to tell my mum that I won't be home till later." He said pulling out his phone.

Annabeth looked thoughtful for a moment. "I should probably tell my housemates I'll be bringing someone over too."

Pulling out her own phone, she started to dial whilst Alex called his mother.

_"Hi, this is Natasha's phone, leave a mess-"_

Alex sighed. Voicemail. Instead, Alex sent a text message to his mum.

_'Hey mum, at a friend's house for a group assignment. Be back later'_

Alex looked up from his phone and heard part of Annabeth's conversation.

"-partner's coming over, so can you tell everyone no weirdness please... Yeah... Yeah sure, no worries... Thanks Haze... See you soon... Bye"

Annabeth ended her call and looked at Alex.

"All set. I have to get to class. I'll meet you in the parking lot after school, ok?"

"Ok, see you soon."

Annabeth walked away to her next class, whilst Alex sighed as he watched her go. He stayed there, staring dreamily at where he last saw her, rounding the corner of the hall when the school bell rang.

_'Oh crap! I'm late for class!'_

* * *

><p>Standing at the car park, waiting for Annabeth was nerve racking. Alex was going to his crush's apartment, together. He was thinking of all the things he could say to her, acting all suave and charismatic. The scenarios in which he would valiantly defend them from a gang of muggers as they travelled to her home, where he would fight them all off but be injured in the process, and then Annabeth would be crying by his body while she professed her love for him and kiss him, and-<p>

"Alex!"

He became flustered and blushed as he saw the object of his thoughts standing in front of him. Thank goodness people couldn't read minds.

"H-hey Annabeth" _'Still stuttering, damn it control yourself man!'_

"You ready to go?"

"Yeah, lead the way."

Annabeth smiled before turning and walking towards where the students parked their cars. Alex shouldered his school bag to follow. He was surprised when Annabeth stopped at a sleek grey Mercedeswith a decal of an owl in flight gripping a trident in its talons, coloured in a sea green, on the side.

He had never suspected that Annabeth would own such a fancy and _expensive_ car. He assumed that it'd be some cheap bomb of a car like every other high schooler who could drive owned. Like the rest of the cars surrounding them.

Then again he _was_ taking about Annabeth. You could never guess what she really does outside of school. Like all of her scars on her face and as far as he could tell, her body too, although she does a pretty good job covering them up. Where did she get them from?

They got into the car, Annabeth starting up the engine. The quiet hum of power reverberated through the car. The interior was as nice as he expected. Smooth, soft leather seats, and so many accessories he couldn't even begin to describe all of them.

As Annabeth pulled out of the parking lot, Alex tried to initiate some small talk.

"Nice car..." he started awkwardly. "Where'd you get it?"

Annabeth smiled faintly at his attempt to break the awkward silence, but she appreciated the effort.

"It's fairly new. All of my friends chipped in a few hundred each to get me this so that I didn't have to catch the bus every morning and afternoon. I wouldn't have minded getting a cheaper one but Leo insisted I drive something appropriate 'in the flair and style of Annabeth'.

Alex didn't know who this 'Leo' was but he hoped he was a brother or uncle, or just someone related to her so that the possibility of him being her boyfriend was out of the question.

"So… what should we start on for Greek? I mean... "Choose a part of Ancient Greek culture and create a 7 minute presentation" isn't exactly the clearest instructions."

Annabeth thought for a moment. "Yeah I guess so... Although the guidelines being so broad allows us a lot more freedom in what we want to do for our presentation."

"True enough." Before he knew it, Annabeth was already parking the car. But the house she stopped in front was something he was not expecting, but really, he didn't know what to expect.

It was huge! The design was beautiful, a mix of Greek and Roman that blended together perfectly.

Alex stared at the house in awe. He could see how Annabeth could own a Mercedes in high-school if this was her house. Annabeth saw his awe-struck face and smirked.

"You should see the inside."

Annabeth unlocked the front door and from what Alex could see past her shoulder, the hall alone looked fantastic. A crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling, casting an enchanting light across the area.

"Come on, I'll give you a tour."

Annabeth led him inside and began to show the different rooms. There was the living room, filled with comfortable looking couches situated around a small coffee table and facing a large TV sitting in an alcove in the wall.

There was a fancy fire place beneath the TV, and although it was lit, Alex didn't feel any heat coming from it. In fact, now that he thought about it, the house temperature was perfect, cool but not too cold, warm but not too hot.

She moved on, deeper into the house. There was a kitchen, dining room with a table that could fit dozens, although considering the size of the house, Alex guessed it would have a lot of inhabitants.

There were so many unique rooms too. There was, in the backyard, what looked to be a stable (although it was currently empty, he could see that it was put to use sometimes), a freaking _forge_ complete with anvil and tools and a furnace (why anyone would need a room for a forge was beyond him. Annabeth said one of her housemates liked metalworking as a hobby) and a training/gym room just to name a few.

"That's for keeping fit and to make sure our reflexes up to scratch." She explained when she showed him the gym. He didn't even know you could have all those things inside a house.

Alex could swear that the inside was actually bigger than what the outside appeared to be. Like... magically so. Like an Expansion Charm from Harry Potter.

The upstairs, second level, was mainly for relaxing and recreation, a swimming pool was there and right next to it was a games and recreation room, sort of like one you'd see at a hotel. It had a pool table, ping pong table, shelves stacked with board games and packs of cards. It was fully decked out with anything a teenager or child... or even an adult... would want for entertainment.

There was a large flat screen too, on top of a cabinet against the far wall and he could see at least four different gaming consoles connected to it, not to mention the shelf filled with video games from ceiling to floor.

With all this, it was a wonder how Annabeth didn't turn out to be a stuck up spoilt brat, as it was obvious that she _was_ spoilt, just without the 'brat' part.

She led him up to the _third_ floor, where she told him was the sleeping quarters. All the bedrooms were spread out like a dormitory at a boarding school. A single main hall with doors along the length, across each other. There were nine doors in total, which, considering the size of the house, Alex thought that there would be a lot more people.

Now that he thought about it, Alex was curious about how they had yet to encounter anyone in the huge house. Just as he was thinking that, a door opened quietly and a girl about their age stepped out.

She had choppy brown hair, done up in a braid hanging down her left shoulder with a feather stuck in it. Her eyes were constantly changing colour like a kaleidoscope whenever you blinked or titled your head. She wore plain faded-blue jeans and a loose white blouse.

She was pretty, beautiful even, but to Alex, he still found Annabeth to be more beautiful.

"Hey Pipes!"

"Annabeth! You're home!" replied 'Pipes' who quickly ran up to Annabeth and gave her a quick hug. She turned and looked at Alex who felt a little out of the loop.

"Hi, I'm Piper McLean." She said bubbly, sticking out her hand.

"Hey, I'm Alex Morrison, a friend of Annabeth." He replied, shaking her hand.

"Wait... McLean, as in Tristan McLean?"

"Yeah, he's my dad..."

Alex gaped in awe at being in the presence of the daughter of a celebrity.

'_So that's probably the reason this house is so extravagant." _Alex deduced.

"Pipes, where is everyone? I'd thought they'd be all over the house." Annabeth asked.

"Oh, Hazel told us about you bringing a mor-" she hesitated, glancing at Alex, and quickly amended her statement, "a guest over so she put us all on 'room-arrest' so we don't freak them out. And when she said 'we' I think she just meant Leo."

"Of course it's Leo. It's always Leo"

Alex didn't like the way she said Leo. Her tone was of exasperation of course, considering the context, but there was also a deep affection and a hint of admiration. He also remembered Annabeth mentioning Leo when she was taking about her car. He wasn't sure who this Leo was, but he didn't like where things were leading to.

Piper just smirked.

"Well, don't let me keep you from working, I was just heading down to get a glass of water."

She moved past them but then Annabeth called out after her.

"Wait up Pipes, how's Percy?" she asked in concern.

Piper looked a little worried and gazed sympathetically at Annabeth.

'_Another male? And sounds as if he's close to Annabeth as well...' _Alex just hoped he wasn't _too_ close.

"He's sleeping. After what happened yesterday, and now, this afternoon..." she trailed off, unsure what to say.

Annabeth's eyes widened in alarm. "This afternoon? What happened? Is he okay?" she asked in quick succession.

Piper's own eyes widened. "You mean he didn't tell you?"

The grey storm that was Annabeth's eyes thundered with anger. "What didn't he tell me?" she almost growled out.

Piper glancing cautiously at Alex. "He dealt with some _cheerleaders_ at school. He's not hurt, just exhausted." she gave a meaningful look, stressing the 'cheerleader' part.

Annabeth narrowed her eyes in anger and Alex could guess why. This Percy guy sounded like such a douchebag. 'Dealt with some cheerleaders'? Yeah, probably some popular man-whore jock going around with the cheerleading team.

This confused Alex, as from experience, he knew Annabeth _hated_ those types of people, and yet her voice sounded concerned for him when asking Piper about him.

But Alex had no idea of the real reason for Annabeth's anger. After everything they've been through together, after saving the world _multiple_ times, they still had to deal with monster crap and godly crap too.

Alex was still wondering about this 'Percy'. Perhaps Annabeth liked him despite his 'habits'. It always seemed that way. The nice, pure and innocent girls fall for the 'bad boy' rebel guys.

But he didn't know for sure yet. He couldn't judge.

"All right, thanks Piper."

Piper descended down the stairs, once again leaving Annabeth and Alex alone.

Quickly, Annabeth began walking towards the end of the hall. Stopping at a door with a plaque that read 'Percy's Room' with seaweed and corals decorating the border, she opened the door slowly, peering inside. The room was brightly lit, the sun streaming in from the open window, fresh air flowing through the room.

It was messy, as Alex suspected, with clothes strewn about, but it did not have all the inappropriate posters that he'd been expecting after hearing about Percy and his adventure with the 'cheerleaders'. Judging from the little titbit that Piper told them, he expected his room to be filled with all sorts of pictures and images of girls, but this room was clean... of such images.

The bed was made, albeit messily, although it clearly looked like someone had used it recently. But there was no sign of 'Percy'.

Annabeth, after seeing that Percy wasn't in, closed the door again and went to the room directly across. This door didn't have a plaque but it had the same insignia as the one on Annabeth's car.

An owl in flight, carrying a trident.

Alex guessed it was Annabeth's room. He looked curiously at the emblem.

"Annabeth... what's with the symbol on your-" Alex began but Annabeth cut him off, making a 'shushing' gesture.

She quietly and slowly opened the door.

The room was dark, slices of light slipped through the small gaps between the blinds of the window. It was clean, as expected of Annabeth, except for her desk, which was littered with blueprints, drawings and plans in an organised chaotic fashion.

Annabeth moved quietly to her bed, which Alex realised already had someone sleeping in it. He had messy black hair and judging by the contours of the blanket, he was quite tall. He was also hugging a pillow that had one of Annabeth's sweaters pulled over it. (Not creepy at all)

Annabeth smiled and gently kissed the top of his head. He mumbled something incoherent and squeezed the Annabeth-pillow tighter, burying his face into the sweater.

She went to her desk and grabbed a few sheets of paper before backing out of the room quietly, still with a gentle smile on her face. She led Alex to the room next to hers, which was a sun-filled small library. Settling herself at a table, she gestured for Alex to do the same before pulling out all her notes.

"So... who was that?

"That was my boyfriend, Percy."

Alex felt a little hurt and crushed. He always had hope that with her standing up for him, and being friends, meant that she might have liked him. And all the jocks she turned down because of a 'mysterious boyfriend' was actually and excuse because she was too shy to admit her feelings for him. He was more than a disappointed to learn the truth. She really did have a boyfriend. And yet, with the cheerleaders and Percy...

"Annabeth... why do you like Percy?"

Looking at him in surprise, Annabeth raised an eyebrow before replying.

"Well, we've known each other since we were twelve, so almost seven years ago. We hated each other at first, but we became friends, and got closer till we became a couple about a two years ago."

Alex felt a little put off, but he gathered his courage and forged onward.

"But what about... you know, him 'dealing with the cheerleaders' and stuff?" He said cryptically, trying not to explicitly mention his activities. But Annabeth got the gist of what he was trying to say and made the connections. She narrowed her eyes at him.

"I know what you are trying to say, and I appreciate your concern, but it is not needed. Percy would never do that and it's not what you think it is. What you heard from Piper is out of context for you. He is the most loyal and selfless person I have ever met and I can safely say I love him. Please don't question his loyalty again."

Alex was surprised at the confession of love for Percy. It was confident too, not at all embarrassed or confused for the fake affection most teenaged girls called 'love' nowadays. Alex was about to argue further but stopped when he saw her expression. It was truly intimidating, yet inspiring at the same time, a fierce loyalty and determination to defend her boyfriend's honour.

"All right, I'm sorry..."

There was an awkward pause, before Alex decided to move on.

"So what part of Greek culture do you want to do?"

Annabeth instantly replied. "Absolutely nothing related to the Underworld."

At Alex's questioning look, she simply said "It just gives me the creeps."

Alex knew there was another reason behind it, because when she utter the word, she shuddered, turning pale and her hands trembled. It was barely noticeable, but Alex saw it all, and it was not a normal reaction to a mythical place... a scary death-filled mythical place. But he let it slide.

"Alright, let's do the opposite then. How about we do a timeline sort of thing? From creation to when the Greek Empire fell?"

"Sounds like a plan." Annabeth agreed.

"So a rough idea, Ouranos and Gaia giving birth to the world and the Titans. Then Kronos cut up Ouranos and cast his bits into the ocean, then the rise of the Olympians, how Zeus cut up Kronos like he did to Ouranos and cast _his_ bits into Tartarus-"

As he spoke of Gaia and Kronos, Annabeth got paler and paler, her hands shaking even more, and as soon as he said 'Tartarus', he knew there was something wrong. There was a loud bang and he looked up to see Annabeth push herself away from the table, away from him. She stood abruptly and in the process knocking over her chair, clattering noisily onto the floor. Her face was pale, unhealthily so, she looked like a ghost. Sweat started to bead on her forehead and her eyes... They were wavering and shaking, focusing on things that weren't there.

"No... Please..." She whispered.

"Annabeth... What-" Alex was cut off when she collapsed on our ground and started to scream. It was as if she was being tortured, her cry filled with pain and agony. Alex didn't know what to do. Chills ran up his spine at her screams. They were almost unhuman, like a ghastly horror movie of demonic _things _incapable of making any other sound. He had never experienced anything like this before.

"Percy!" She screamed out, whilst writhing in pain, tears streaming down her face.

Almost instantly, the door slammed open, Percy racing into the room. He ran over to Annabeth and engulfed her in a hug, her back against his chest, his head next to her ear, alternating between whispering and reassuring her to kissing the top of her head, his own tears dampening her hair.

"Annabeth... It's okay, we're alive, we're together..."

Alex suddenly noticed the rest of the occupants of the house were in the library too. There were four boys and five girls, including Annabeth and Percy who were now slowly rocking back and forth, Percy humming a soft tune.

There was a buff Asian with a babyish face, his expression was serious, a hard frown of unreadable emotion which did not go well with his baby face. Alex would have been amused if not for the situation. Next to him was a shorter, darker skinned girl with long frizzy brown hair. Her hazel eyes watered with tears as she looked on at the scene.

Piper was there too, her hair still in a braid with a feather in it, and she was clutching the arm of a tall blond handsome guy, with a scar on his lip. Both had expressions of deep sadness.

There was a Latino elfish-looking boy whose hands could not stop moving in agitation. There were constantly reaching into a tool belt that hung around his waist but pulling out nothing, just gripping something before relaxing and tensing again.

Next to him was a girl wearing a sleeveless dress, in a similar fashion to what the Greeks would wear, her caramel hair braided over one shoulder.

Lastly, there was a girl with dark hair with electric blue highlights in them. She rocked the whole 'goth-punk' theme with heavy eyeliner and black leather except for a silver tiara on her head which looked very much out of place.

She was the first to notice him.

She gestured for him to leave, as well as the rest of the group.

"C'mon guys, give them some space."

They all filed out, leaving Percy to comfort Annabeth.

Alex was last out, closing the door to shut out the noise of Annabeth's screams and as soon as he closed it, the gothic punk girl grabbed him by the collar and shoved him against the wall roughly. Her eyes were frightening, a raging storm of lightning in her electric blue eyes.

"What did you do?" She growled out.

Alex feared for his life her expression was so deadly, he couldn't speak, frozen in fear. Thankfully, Piper came to his aid.

"Thalia! Lay off him, he couldn't have known."

The punk girl, Thalia, glanced at Piper before releasing his collar but she still glared at him.

"What did you do?" She repeated, though slightly less aggressively.

The rest of the group looked on, waiting for his answer. It was intimidating to be at the centre of attention, with more than a few glares directed at him.

He finally found enough of his voice to answer her.

"I didn't do anything I swear, we were just discussing what we were going to do for our Greek assignment when she started screaming."

"Did you say anything related to the Underworld?" The girl with frizzy brown hair asked quickly.

"No... No, she specifically mentioned not to do the Underworld and so I suggested creation with Ouranos and Kronos and then Zeu-" Alex stopped, realising that he has indeed said something relating to the Underworld.

'_Tartarus'_

"I said Tartarus..." He said softly.

He could feel the temperature drop, despite the warm sunny day outside. Disbelief was etched onto a few of the faces and some were shocked but the rest were angry.

"You said WHAT?!" Thalia nearly screamed.

Alex was so confused... "What's so wrong about Tar-"

"Do not speak the name!" The girl with caramel hair cut him off quickly.

"But what's so wrong with it?"

Piper glanced at the rest of the group. They got the message and dispersed, but not without sending some glances his way, and the girl with frizzy hair stayed.

"What's wrong with _that_ word…" she began, carefully, glancing at the girl with frizzy hair.

She nodded and Piper turned back to Alex.

"They were kidnapped by an underground criminal group who goes by _that_ name. All of their important objectives and people and such were codenamed with things of the Underworld. That's why she reacts to anything related to the Underworld. I guess you could say she has a form of post-traumatic stress disorder."

Alex eyes widened. You would always hear about these things on the news, but you never really felt worry, always thinking 'this'll never happen to me'. But something like that happening to Annabeth… it was so close to home…

"In fact, Percy has it too, but to a lesser extent. When Annabeth was captured, Percy had the chance to escape, but he let himself get captured to stay with Annabeth. And together, they managed to escape with the help of some of the other captives."

All of Alex's previous thoughts and doubts on Percy flew out the window. Annabeth was right. His loyalty was unquestionable.

His crush on Annabeth faded, but affection and admiration still lingered. He doubted it would ever fade but he knew he could never break them apart, not that he even wanted to now. They _needed _each other, after what they had been through together.

"I-I'm sorry…"

"It's fine, I suppose. They'll make it through. They always have."

"I guess you'll have to reschedule your work day with Annabeth. I'll show you out of the house" Said the girl with frizzy hair.

Alex followed her down the stairs and through the house. Along the way, he was feeling extremely guilty for making Annabeth have to relive what was probably a nightmare he could never comprehend.

They reached the front door, the girl opening it and stepping aside to let him pass.

"Can you please tell Annabeth that I'm sorry? And Percy too… I didn't know and…" he trailed off, unable to say anymore.

The girl nodded.

"I will."

She closed the door, leaving Alex on his own.

As he walked away from the house, he turned and looked to the third floor, at a window to the left side.

He could still hear her… screaming.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Well, that took a darker turn than I had expected, but I was influenced by CreepyPasta which I had just read a story from. Well, anyway, I hope you like it. This is a oneshot and will remain that way, however I will probably add other oneshots eventually.**

**In case you didn't recognise the descriptions, the people of the house were: Frank, Hazel, Piper, Jason, Leo, Calypso and obviously Percy and Annabeth.**

**Please write a review and favourite if you liked.**

**~Matantor**


	2. Good Friends

**Disclaimer: Don't own**

**AN: PLEASE NOTE: Not related to the first chapter what-so-ever. Whole new story.**

Annabeth was lying on her bed, in the dorms of a New York boarding school. Unfortunately, it wasn't Goode High School, which was where Percy went, as apparently all the classes were full (though Percy insisted that there was room for one more). It was rather disappointing, after finally convincing her parents and being able to live in New York but not go to the same school as her boyfriend.

But despite that small disappointment, her new school had been pretty good by her standards. It was only occasionally that she had to turn someone down after asking her out on a date and she managed to make a few friends who didn't mind about how much more male attention she had than others. Much better than her previous school in San Francisco.

Said friends were all her roommates. It was hard to live with people and not get along so being friends helped the situation a lot. But they all disapproved of Percy.

She could even understand where they were coming from though. It had happened enough in real life, advertised all over social media and in TV shows.

The smooth, charming, devilishly handsome guy who played girls like instruments. The date-and-dump kind of guy. The one-night-stand type (or keep them until they get bored). Of course they didn't know that Percy was also a demigod like her, that she knew him since they was twelve and that he literally fell into hell with her. _For _her.

And year after year, ever since they were twelve when they met at Camp Half-Blood, they went on so many adventures together, bonding and becoming closer to each other. She doubted _anything _could split them apart. Not even the gods. _Especially_ not the gods, Aphrodite would smite anyone who tried (She put too much effort into finally getting them together).

But her friends didn't understand. They only saw the 'bad boy' in Percy. To be honest, it's easily seen at first glance. And second too, when you think of it. The multitude of 'criminal' cases (i.e. blowing up band rooms) a country-wide manhunt on his first quest, his 'getting-kick-out-of-every-school' reputation, not to mention the SPQR tattoo on his forearm from his visit to the Romans.

Yes, it was _very _easy to see the 'bad boy' in Percy.

But Annabeth knew it was simply his public appearance. Inside, just below the surface, if you took even just a second to know him, there was a caring, selfless man that was so sweet he would melt your heart. He turned down _godhood_ to be with her, and that was _before _they were even dating.

Annabeth remembered when her friends first met Percy a few weeks ago.

**|-| Flashback**

"Annabeth!"

She turned around to see one of her roommates, Tamara Rethus. She was a rather short girl, auburn hair done in a loose braid, hanging over her shoulder, a questioning look in her chocolate brown eyes.

"Are you going to Reece's party on the weekend?"

"No, sorry. I'm going away for this weekend." Annabeth replied with a soft smile.

"What! Annabeth! Come on, like, our entire year is going to be there. You have to go." Tamara said in shock, no one in their right state of mind would miss out on this party. "Where are you going that could be more important than going to Reece's?"

"My boyfriend is taking me to Montauk for a little vacation and relaxation."

Tamara responded before Annabeth could even finish, as if no matter what she was doing, it wasn't as important as going to the party.

"That's nice and all but Re-" She stopped suddenly, her eyes widened comically. "Wait… BOYFRIEND?!" she almost screamed out. Annabeth merely raised an eyebrow.

"Why are you so surprised? Am I that undesirable?" Annabeth joked.

"How did I not know of this before though? I thought we were friends Annabeth. Friends!" Tamara looked like a kicked puppy, a look of betrayal in her warm trusting eyes. But Annabeth wasn't affected… much. She's experienced much better and more effective 'guilt-tripping' expressions from Percy. She just shrugged.

"It just never came up."

"Girl, that's like, the first thing you say to your friends. But anyway, when am I gonna meet this lucky guy? And he's taking you to Montauk… That's so romantic…" Tamara said dreamily.

"He's picking me up on Friday when classes are over. You can meet him then if you want."

Tamara gave a girlish squeal. "Can't wait to meet the person who caught the eye of the infamous 'never-ever-dating' Annabeth."

Annabeth looked flabbergasted. "People actually call me the 'never-ever-dating' Annabeth? What the Hades!"

**|-| Scene break (within flashback)**

Tamara was so excited. She wanted to find out just who had managed to take and hold the heart of Annabeth in their hands. She really hoped he was a nice guy. She knew Annabeth didn't really have the nicest of childhoods. The whole afternoon, she couldn't concentrate on the lessons. The clock above the whiteboard ticked aggravatingly slow.

_BRRRRNGGGGG_

Finally! The last bell! Tamara shoved all her books into her bag and almost sprinted out of her class, determined to meet Annabeth's boyfriend, as if getting outside would make him appear faster. She had told the rest of her roommates about the visiting boyfriend and they were all just as excited to meet him.

Sitting in the car drop off/pick-up bay next to the school building, she quickly looked for her other roommates. Soon enough, Ashley Mortel and Rebecca Holgate were sitting with her, chatting amicably about Annabeth's mystery boyfriend, Reece's upcoming party and regular school gossip.

Ashley was a tallish girl (although not as tall as Annabeth) long silky black hair that flowed like a river, tied up in a simple ponytail. She had warm hazel eyes and was usually the first person to volunteer to help with anything.

Rebecca was a little shorter than Ashley, her strawberry blond hair in a half up half down fashion. Her light blue eyes screamed mischievousness, she loved the occasional prank. Or five.

A few more minutes passed until _finally_ she saw Annabeth walking towards them, talking and laughing with Elena Neo, carrying a duffel bag. Elena was a bit of an outcast at the school. She had bright sapphire blue eyes and a curious (but pretty) shade of light pale blue hair which made her the subject of bullying and torment from a select few of her peers. Tamara herself never really cared, but she didn't do anything to stop the bullying like the many other bystanders, even though she was well aware of what was going on.

She felt a little shameful when Annabeth came to the school and put a stop to the bullying. When she actually got to know Elena, she was a quiet and withdrawn girl, probably made worse by the bullying but she was very sweet and caring. And of course Annabeth, with her honey blonde princess curls and striking grey eyes. She was the subject of envy from quite a few females in the school and of attention from the males (although she now knew there was a _particular_ male that Annabeth had eyes for).

Tamara waved them over to where she, Ashley and Rebecca were sitting.

"Hey Annabeth, Elena."

The roommates greeted each other warmly, before Tamara asked the question that was on all of their minds.

"So, when is he going to arrive?" she said with a knowing smile.

But just as she asked her question, a sleek grey Mercedes pulled up beside them. People stopped and stared at the beautiful car, a decal of an owl gripping a trident in its claws spray painted on the sides. Annabeth smiled widely.

"That's him."

The engine switched off and the door opened. And out stepped a ridiculously handsome young man with his tousled black hair, sunglasses over his eyes, chiselled jaw and a tall, muscular but lean build. He was wearing a plain white shirt and faded blue jeans, but he managed to make it look impressive on him. She was sure she had to scrape her jaw off the floor, along with Ashley and Rebecca and even Elena. And Annabeth calmly walked up to him.

"Hey Seaweed Brain." she smiled brightly

The man, 'Seaweed Brain', smiled back at her, taking off his sunglasses, revealing gorgeous sea-green eyes.

"Sup Wise Girl." He wrapped Annabeth in a hug and kissed her sweetly on the lips.

Annabeth looked back at her friends, whom were still gaping at Percy, and cleared her throat. They instantly realised they were staring and suddenly looked away, blushing.

"Percy, these are my friends, Tamara, Elena, Rebecca and Ashley." She said, pointing to each one of them as she said their name. "Guys, this is my boyfriend, Percy Jackson."

"Hi-hey-hello." they said simultaneously.

Tamara narrowed her eyes slightly. Percy Jackson... the name sounded so familiar for some reason.

"You ready to go?" Percy asked.

Annabeth adjusted her hold on her duffel bag she was carrying, bring Percy's attention to it. "Yup, all packed and ready to go."

"Here. Let me get that." He reached out to take the bag, and though Annabeth offered no physical resistance, she still complained about it vocally.

"Seaweed Brain, I can carry it myself you know." She said, slightly exasperated.

Percy smiled winningly at her. "Of course I know. But it's a gentlemanly thing to do isn't it?" He said, swinging the bag into his own shoulder.

Tamara's eyes narrowed further when she stopped a black tattoo on his forearm. She was getting and 'off' feeling about this Percy. And she didn't like it.

Percy put Annabeth's bag in the back whilst she was saying goodbye to her friends. Tamara snapped out of her speculation of Percy when Annabeth stepping in front of her.

"See you Annabeth. Have fun." She pulled her into a hug, whispering into her ear, "be careful, I'm getting a weird feeling from Percy."

Tamara released Annabeth from the hug, who stepped back and looked at her quizzically with a raised eyebrow. She shrugged regardless.

"I'll be careful, don't worry."

She got into the car and Tamara watched it drive away.

**|-| End flashback**

Annabeth was brought out of her thoughts when she heard the door to her room open. Tamara poked her head in.

"Hey Annabeth, I'm meeting up with Rebecca, Ashley and Elena for some coffee down the street, do you want to come?"

"Umm, sure, but you go on ahead, I'll be there in, maybe 10 minutes. I'm just going to rest a bit. It's been a hectic week for me." Annabeth replied smiling.

Tamara rolled her eyes. "Yeah no kidding. You were snapping at everyone these past few days."

Annabeth grimaced. "Sorry."

"Well, you have a rest, take your time and come meet up whenever you feel like it."

"Sure, thanks Tamara."

"See you in a bit."

* * *

><p>Tamara walked down and out onto the street to the little cafe a short way down the street. Entering into the quaint building, she spotted her friends sitting in the corner, giggling and laughing.<p>

She went over to join them. "Hey girls!"

"Heya Tamara. Where's Annabeth?"

"She's worn out, so she's resting for a bit before joining us."

Ashley leaned forward, a serious look on her face. "Since she isn't here, let's discuss about Percy. What are we going to do?"

Tamara remembered the discussion they had in their room after they had just met him, watching Annabeth speeding away with him in the Mercedes.

**|-| Flashback**

"Did any of you feel something weird with Percy? Like there was wrong with him or something."

"Yeah, I felt it too, it was really strange."

"Me too."

Elena kept silent, but she nodded her head as well.

"And did you see his tattoo? It kinda worries me." Rebecca

"It's almost as if it was burnt into his skin rather than inked." Ashley agreed.

"And he's really attractive too. But his personality is a huge turn off." Elena added.

"Percy Jackson..." Tamara rolled the name off her tongue. She was almost certain she had heard that name before.

"Hey, wasn't he the guy on the news a few years back! About vandalising The Arch or something?"

Everyone's eyes widened in realisation.

Tamara quickly jumped to the laptop at her desk and googled '_Percy Jackson_'. The rest of the girls crowding around her, staring at the screen.

All of the searches came up with Percy Jackson and his misadventures.

"Country wide man-hunt for criminal on the run, Percy Jackson..."

"Crazy student, Percy Jackson, blows up band room..."

"Percy Jackson, high school delinquent, kicked out of every school he's been to..."

They stared in silence, shocked at the results.

"This raises so many questions. Does Annabeth know this? How did he get together with her in the first place with this kind of reputation?" Tamara asked no one in particular.

"What are his intentions towards Annabeth?" That question stopped the girls short.

It was Elena who voiced their concerns. "Do you think that's he just... trying to... you know... get into Annabeth's pants?"

"We have to tell her."

**|-| End flashback**

"But how are we going to make Annabeth see that he's just considers her like a 'conquest'?" Tamara asked.

"I know! She completely disregarded all those news articles." Elena said glumly.

"We need solid evidence that Percy is just trying to-" Tamara stopped short when she saw none other than Percy Jackson standing across the street from the cafe they were in.

And he seemed to be flirting _with another girl!_

"What the hell!"

The other girls looked with shocked eyes, staring disbelievingly, as they hugged, and _together_ they walked into the burger joint they were standing in front of.

Tamara recovered the quickest. "Someone take a picture and send it to me, I'll go get Annabeth and show her the real side of Percy."

She all but sprinted back to the school, racing up the stairs to their dorms. A little vibration in her pocket told her that someone managed to snap incriminating evidence of Percy and sent it to her.

Quickly checking her phone, she saw the image. Percy with the other girl, sitting at their table in the burger joint, laughing together. If Annabeth didn't believe them now, nothing would convince her. And Tamara would then be sure that she was brain-washed or something. She _hated_ those kinds of people, and would never willingly date one.

Looking down at her phone whilst running wasn't the smartest idea Tamara had. But luckily Annabeth was already on her way to meet up with them and her reflexes were scarily fast. Tamara almost smashed into Annabeth, but she managed to catch her and swing her around to lose her momentum. The phone slipped out of her hands but Annabeth managed to snatch it right out of the air, screen still displaying the image.

"Woah, Tamara, slow down. I wasn't dying or anything, I was just coming down now."

Tamara took a moment to breathe, back hunched and hands resting on her knees. She really needed to get more fit.

"Look… on the phone…" she said breathlessly, whilst gesturing to the phone in Annabeth's hand.

Annabeth frowned and glanced at the screen in her hand. Her grey eyes widened in shock at what she saw.

Tamara didn't want to play the whole, 'told you so', but, "See, we told you he wasn't good for you." Tamara said sadly, catching her expression.

Annabeth's eyes narrowed in anger.

"Where is this?" She asked in a dangerously quiet voice.

"It's right across the cafe where we usually meet."

Annabeth handed her phone back to her and stormed off, down the stairs to the street, silent but determined steps.

Tamara followed almost timidly. She had seen Annabeth angry once, when she stopped the bullying towards Elena, and she did not want to ever see that anger directed at her.

* * *

><p>Ashley, Rebecca and Elena were waiting outside the cafe, across the road from Percy, not wanted to draw attention that they had seen him with another girl and potentially scare him off before Annabeth could see.<p>

Annabeth burst into the burger joint, surprising the few patrons within and drawing attention to her. Including Percy and the girl, her friends trailing behind her.

Tamara could see Percy's expression clearly. One of confusion, which swiftly morphed into shocked realisation and then guilt and panic. Tamara couldn't help but feel vindictive satisfaction at finally bringing down Percy Jackson and protecting Annabeth from him.

Annabeth stormed up to them, directly facing Percy.

"Perseus Jackson," Percy winced at the use of his full name. Her tone was quiet, but it was laced with anger. "Why did you not tell me Thalia was here?"

"I'm sorry, there were mon- I mean, problems and Thalia was there to help me and it just kinda slipped my mind…" he babbled.

"Annabeth," the girl laughed slightly, "Lay off him. He'll always be a Kelp Head."

Wait what.

Tamara took time to study the girl, Thalia. She had spiky dark hair with blue highlights, thick, heavy eyeliner which brought out her startling electric blue eyes. Her outfit screamed 'goth' although the silver tiara detracted from that theme.

But Tamara was more shocked when she got up and hugged Annabeth.

"Hey Annie. It's been a while" she said.

Tamara literally couldn't even anymore. No one could get away with calling Annabeth 'Annie'.

"Wait, you guys know each other?" Rebecca asked astonished.

"Of course, we're all childhood friends." Thalia said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Wait, so Percy isn't actually trying to get into your pants?" Elena blurted out. When she realised what she'd said, she blushed bright red, trying to hide her face behind the long sleeves of her sweater.

There was a sudden silence, before Thalia burst out laughing. Annabeth quickly joined in whilst Percy just looked put out. Tamara and the rest of the girls felt a little out of depth. Realisation dawned on Annabeth's face.

"So that's why you brought up Percy's criminal record? Because you thought he was some douchebag trying to get into my pants?"

"We-we thought..." Ashley stopped, flustered at the mistake.

"Hey wait, what! I have a criminal record?" was Percy's surprised outcry.

Annabeth smiled and continued as if Percy never said anything. "We've known each other since we were twelve. He's awfully patient if he _just_ wants to get into my pants. And I've known Thalia since I was seven if you were curious."

Now Percy was blushing in embarrassment and Thalia was laughing merrily at him.

Tamara herself was becoming a little embarrassed. Here she thought Percy was a typical 'bad boy', and then she discovers he's not at all like that _and _that he's childhood friends with Annabeth. It made a lot more sense in her mind regarding their relationship. Annabeth would never allow someone without integrity to date her.

Thalia smiled at her. "You have nice friends Annie, they look out for you. Even if their concerns are misplaced."

Tamara felt a little proud at the compliment, and she could feel Ashley, Rebecca and even Elena stand just a little straighter.

Annabeth smiled at them too. "Yeah, you guys are great."

"Could you tell me what my criminal record is please?" Percy chipped in.

Before any of them could reply, Annabeth responded. "Surely you know your own criminal record and reputation, you bad boy." She winked teasingly at him.

"Annabeth!" came the indignant answer.

They all laughed together, even Percy after a few moments.

* * *

><p><strong>Writing super slow due to school and laziness and stuff.<strong>

**Write a review and/or favourite if you liked.**

**~Matanator**


	3. Mission Impossible

**Just some silliness.**

* * *

><p>Mark was waiting outside, reading a book in the shade of a large tree in the afternoon sun, in front of the college he attended at, waiting for his sister to pick him up. It was the end of semester and all of the occupants of the college had to leave to allow the cleaners to steam-clean all the carpets, dust all the curtains, air the beds and pretty much just completely clean out the entire place.<p>

All his bags and luggage were scattered around him, ready to be hauled into a boot of a car.

It was the last day before they locked the doors to the college, and Mark had only just finished his university course work and so the college was pretty much empty. It was like this every year though, so he didn't mind too much.

Currently, there were only seven people left, including himself, and he knew all of them by face and they were all inside. Everyone else had left. So, understandably, he was slightly confused and worried when he saw a hooded figure, legs bent and moving low, as if they didn't want to be seen, heading towards the college doors.

'_A thief? Vandal?'_

Mark slowly rose from his position, ready to confront the stranger who was now not-so-sneakily climbing the stairs to the large front doors, emblazoned with the college crest.

He quickly chased the stranger down as he entered the college. It would be too easy to lose him in the maze of corridors without seeing which way he went first.

Racing inside, he could see the stranger making his way down the East Wing, still crouched over, where all the facilities of the college. Strange, he would've thought he'd go for the dorms on the West Wing. Mark started to follow him but something made him pause.

It echoed around the empty halls.

_Dun dun, da de dun dun…._

'What the… what kind of respectable thief hums the _Mission Impossible theme_ to himself during a heist?'

This obviously wasn't as sinister as Mark had been led to believe. It was probably a prank by one of the other colleges.

He smiled to himself as he continued to follow the stranger at a much more sedated pace, curious to see what he would do.

He had to stifle a few laughs when he realised that this stranger had a hand-gun out. As in, the gun shape made by his fingers. With one hand against the palm of his other, he was leaning against walls and checking corners, jumping out with his 'gun' outstretched, as if he were a secret spy on a secret mission, all the while he continued to hum the Mission Impossible theme.

Mark was careful to remain hidden, not wanting to ruin the stranger's role-playing fantasy. It was amusingly childish and definitely did not belong on an 18-something-looking-year-old person.

The stranger seemed to know where he was going though, and soon enough, he entered the 'Great Library', as they called it at the college.

Taking a risk, Mark, as quietly as he could, ran to the door as it was closing, not wanted to alert the stranger to his presence by opening the door after him and also not wanting to miss the no-doubt amusing action.

He wondered what kind of prank it would be, whether he should just avoid the library or tell someone about it. Or if it even would be a prank. Perhaps it really was a thief, just a very, _very_ bad one. One that wanted to steal books maybe…

Slipping inside before the door closed, he quickly looked around, to see where the stranger was.

All he could see, however, amongst the tables, chairs, shelves and books was the blonde head of Annabeth Chase sitting at a desk, working away.

Being a senior, Mark didn't really associate with the freshmen, but everyone knew the reputation Annabeth Chase had. One of the prettiest girls in the college that took no crap from nobody. Beautiful, fierce and nearly freakishly smart, she was the object of desire for many. Not that anyone could get her to reciprocate the desire. She always said 'no' to any attempt at romance. Anyone who got too forward or couldn't take no for an answer were usually judo flipped onto the floor. If she was feeling nice and not particularly vindictive, she would walk away from you. If not, various body parts would be hurting by the end.

Many of the single males had tried to score a date with her, but Mark never really got into the whole 'see who can ask Annabeth out without getting hit' thing. Sure she was pretty, but Mark knew when a cause was lost. It was pretty obvious (to him at least) that she already had someone else in mind.

Despite that, it was still amusing to watch everyone fail.

And so, it was with great amusement on Mark's part when this stranger, whom he spied behind a bookcase, started to creep up on her.

A sudden thought of a more insidious intent flashed in his mind. He dismissed it quickly. Clearly, only someone who could joke with her would be singing Mission Impossible audible enough that she could hear it without her turning around.

_Duudu dooo, duudu dooo dun dun..._

A quiet slap of hand-on-skin as she faced-palmed echoed through the empty library, in what he assumed was fond exasperation.

The stranger executed a clumsy stealth roll, the type you'd see in a comedy movie, and Mark had to cover his mouth to keep from laughing at the ridiculous action. His hood fell from his head, revealing black messy hair.

Now right behind her chair, the stranger slowly rose up, before...

"Boo!"

"Seaweed Brain, you were singing the Mission Impossible theme the entire time in the library, and I can probably guess before too. You're hardly top notch in the stealth department." She said, without turning around.

"Oh, come on Wise Girl... Cut me some slack. I'm hardly known for being subtle. That was pretty stealthy for me wasn't it?" 'Seaweed Brain' pouted, leaning over her shoulder, like one of those annoying cats who just lie on top of everything.

"Percy please, I am trying to get work done."

"But Annabeeeeeth..." He whined like a petulant child.

"For Zeus' sake Percy! You're not three years old."

Mark agreed. 'Percy' seemed to have the maturity of a teaspoon. '_And Zeus? What the heck…'_

"But I'm boooored..." he said, stretching out on top of the desk.

Annabeth sighed, realising she was not going to get any work done.

"Alright, alright, fine. I needed to go anyway."

Percy immediately hopped up and started to help Annabeth pack all of her study notes.

Mark suddenly realised how creepy and awkward it'd be if they saw him just standing there. Quickly moving to the nearest bookshelf, he began to pretend to peruse through the titles.

_PING!_

The sudden chime from his phone had the couple looking over at him.

Acting as if he weren't under complete scrutiny of the two teens, he checked his phone.

'_Where are you moron? I'm waiting out here for you.'_

A text from his sister. You could tell she loved him.

He had completely forgotten he was suppose to be picked up, so caught up in laughing at the stra- Percy's attempt to be stealthy.

He glanced up from his phone to see both of them still staring at him. Awkwardly nodding to them, he exited the library, feeling a drop of sweat slide down his neck. Their stares were the most intense thing he'd ever experienced, like they were determining whether to kill him or not particularly Percy.

He shivered involuntarily, feeling glad to be out from under their gaze. He ran back outside, to the tree where he'd left his bags. He could see his sister's car in the parking lot and waved in her general direction.

Hurryingly picking up his bags, he lugged his possessions to the car.

"Took your time blockhead." His sister said, as he got in the car.

"You hardly waited long pleb." He shot back. Their relationship was wonderful.

Mark wondered if it were better to be facing the glares of Annabeth and Percy rather than the one his sister was giving him now.

His mind flashed back to the steely grey eyes of Annabeth, and the dark swirling sea-green of Percy. He'd pick his sister over them any time.

"Thanks for picking me up."

The glare disappeared.

"Heh, no worries. I get to show off I have my licence now. So how was college since I last saw you?" she asked, as she pulled out from the car park.

"It was alright… Got a lot of summer work to do."

"Hah! Sucked in! I'm still on holidays for three more weeks."

* * *

><p>"Who was that?" Percy asked with suspicious eyes. He had trouble trusting anyone after Tartarus. Anything could be a monster.<p>

"That was Mark, he's a senior here, and no, he's not a monster." Annabeth said, carefully placing her folders and notes into her bag, making sure they wouldn't crease. Percy immediately brightened again.

"Come on Annabeth, hurry up! Mom's been asking about you since forever. I swear, she loves you more than me."

Annabeth rolled her eyes.

"Hey! I've got a great idea!"

"Oh no, that's dangerous."

"Yeah har har. But let's play a game, let's not be seen until we get to the car. Like we're in enemy territory and we've got to get back to the evac vehicle."

"You've been watching _way_ too many Tom Cruise films."

"Let's go!"

Percy suddenly burst out of the library doors, rolling across the hallway, his hand-gun out once more, aiming down the hallway.

"Oh my gods Percy. No. I'm not doing that."

"Come on, it'll be fun." He said with an adorable grin. She didn't know if she could ever win an argument against that face.

"The things I do for you…" Annabeth couldn't believe she was doing this. She pulled her hands out of her pockets, slowly forming a hand-gun of her own. She hoped no one saw them on the way.

_Dun dun, daa dee dun dun…_

* * *

><p><strong>Reviews... I like them indeed.<strong>

**~Matanator**


	4. Old

**Here I am again. Slow, always will be.**

**No fluff sorry :/**

* * *

><p>Monica was terrified. They were chasing her. They were right behind her. She could hear the rasping breaths they drew into their hideous bodies. She pushed herself, running faster to escape them, her breath steaming in the cooling afternoon, her heart and feet pounding in a syncopated rhythm.<p>

_"Leeeeet ussss feeeeaaaaasssssst!"_

She shuddered, hearing their harsh voices, scared of how close they sounded.

She threw a glance over her shoulder, her messy black hair whipping back and forth.

There were three of them chasing her. They looked like a cross between a snake and a human. A vaguely human female body but their lower half were two huge bodies of snakes.

Monica squeaked in fear when one of them threw a spear at her. She could see it glinting in the late afternoon sun as it raced towards her. With reflexes she didn't know she had, she spun around and deflected it, sliding her hand along against the shaft behind the head of the spear before grasping it.

Stumbling slightly with the twist and the added weight, Monica kept running, looking in shock at her hand which now held the metallic spear.

Looking ahead, she could see the trees thinning. It was a clearing of some sort. Like the one she was suppose to be in right now.

Monica couldn't comprehend how she ended up in this situation.

She was supposed to be on a school camp. All of her classmates and friends were spending the weekend in tents out in the forest, a break from the monotonous city hustle of New York.

She remembered her mother, looking nervous as she dropped her off at school, telling her to be careful and if she saw anything, to tell a teacher.

Monica rolled her eyes at that. She was seven years old already! She wasn't a baby anymore. But now, it came back to bite her.

Their teacher had told them to gather wood for a fire, and so, Monica went off. She was going to bring back the biggest pile of wood!

She strayed a little too far from the camp, a little too deep into the forest. She had gotten lost, she couldn't find her way back, and now she had three horrible _monsters_ chasing her.

Monica cried out when her foot caught on a root, bringing her out of her thoughts and she was sent tumbling to the ground, losing her grip on the spear she'd caught.

She groaned in pain, but she couldn't afford to be idle. She scrambled to her feet, grabbing the spear, her only defense. She ran again, the monsters now even closer. She could hear the scrape of the snaky legs and she didn't dare look back for fear of what she'll see.

Monica redoubled her efforts, gasping for breath. She reached the clearing and saw the sun, streaming serenely through the canopy of the trees. At any other time, she would've taken the time to appreciate the natural beauty, but now... All she could focus on was what was sitting in the middle of the clearing.

A single cabin, her only hope. She was tiring.

Racing up to the wall facing her, she pounded her fist against the wood, panting from exhaustion.

"Please help me!" she screamed, hoping someone was inside.

"No-one isss going to ssssave you noooow" They hissed in glee.

She turned around to finally face her pursuers, gripping the spear, knuckles turning white. The three snake ladies surrounded her, blocking her escape, her back against the wall. One was holding a round shield and a jagged sword, the other two holding identical spears to her own.

Monica attempted to thrust her spear at the one in front of her, but the snake-lady laughed, deflecting it with ease and batting the weapon out of Monica's hands.

Monica was shaking in fear… she didn't want to die. She cowered against the wall, trying to make herself as small as possible.

She whimpered and closed her eyes as they moved in.

_Shriiiing!_

_Shreeeeeeeek!_

A three horrible wails rung out in the clearing.

Monica snapped her eyes open in time to see an elderly man put a pen in his pocket, three piles of golden dust sitting innocently behind him, granules already drifting into the wind.

He ran a critical eye over her, checking for any serious injuries. Finding none, he squatted down to her level and smiled kindly at her, the wrinkles around his eyes becoming more prominent.

"Hey, how'd you find yourself all alone out here?"

He had fading grey hair, in a stylishly messy mop on his head and beautiful sea-green eyes, just like hers, curiously enough. He wore a faded pair of loose jeans and a hoodie and an orange coloured shirt peeking out from underneath. Pretty trendy for an old guy. Except for a pair of fluffy owl slippers that were on his feet. Monica couldn't help it. After all the exhilaration and fear, she started giggling before laughing fully out loud.

The old man looked confused for a moment, before he looked down at where she was looking. He started to smile and sheepishly rubbed the back of his head.

"Well you know, when someone starts screaming outside your house, you don't really think about what you're wearing."

That instantly sobered Monica up. She immediately hung her head.

"I- I'm sorry for disturbing you mister."

All the old people at the apartment where she and her mother were staying at never refrained from telling her that she was a nuisance.

"Nonsense!" The man smiled kindly, moving to sit next to her, leaning against the wall of the house. "You were in trouble, and it's only right to help those in need."

Monica didn't know how to reply to that, so she kept silent, a little intimidated and shy around this stranger in the middle of nowhere.

"I'm Percy by the way. Percy Jackson. What's your name?" The stranger, Mr Jackson, said suddenly, a smile gracing his features.

"I- I'm Monica Sommersby." She responded a little awkwardly, unsure how to act in front of the old man.

A small frown appeared on his face, and for a moment, Monica thought somehow she'd done something wrong. '_How do you give your name to someone the wrong way?' _she thought, panicking.

"Sommersby…" the old man muttered. "You wouldn't happen to be related to a Natalie Sommersby?"

Monica's eyes widened in shock. "Umm… yeah, she- she's my mum."

"Small small world…" he muttered, before he blinded her with a brilliant smile. "That explains so much, and so, let's go!"

He leaped up with agility that she wouldn't expect from someone who looked that old. Monica was left confused.

"Wait what…?"

He looked back at Monica, who was still sitting against the wall of the cabin, looked confused at why she was confused.

"Well, we have to get you back to your mother, don't we?" he said. "So, come on! No point in dallying here."

"But…" she gestured weakly to the diminishing piles of dust in front of her. She didn't think she had the energy to even stand up

Mr Jackson looked mildly embarrassed as he realised, and sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. Suddenly, his face brightened up.

"Want a piggyback?"

* * *

><p>A rapid knock echoed throughout the small apartment room. Natalie Sommersby looked up from the coffee table, surprised. She wasn't expecting anyone, especially since her daughter was on a camp for the weekend. Quickly making her way to the door, she prayed that Monica didn't get hurt.<p>

The knocking continued just as she opened the door. Standing in front of her, a hand still up in the air, was an old man, with her daughter on his back, eyes closed and her head resting on the man's shoulder. She nearly screamed.

"Oh my gods! Monica!" she panicked, immediately assuming, since she was back from camp early that she was hurt. She was held back by the man however.

"She's fine Nat, just sleeping."

Taking a closer look at the old man, she suddenly realised it was someone she recognised.

"Mr Jackson! But, I thought… When did… How… What…?"

"Why is everyone so confused whenever I turn up…" She heard him mutter under his breath. "It doesn't matter about me, but Monica here," he said, jerking his chin at the sleeping child on his back, "has attracted some _unsavory_ attention."

Natalie gasped in horror, her hands over her mouth.

"You know what needs to happens now." His serious green eyes bore into hers.

She nodded, tears forming, but she determinedly held them back. She knew the risks of keeping Monica at home. She had to go to Camp. And there was nothing she could do.

She smiled humourlessly, thinking of the irony of going to a camp, only to leave and go to Camp.

"I'll… I'll go pack what she needs. The car is parked just across the street. You can put Monica there, I'll be over in a minute."

Mr Jackson nodded and shuffled off, Monica still sleeping peacefully on his back, blissfully unaware of the dramatic changes occurring in her life.

Natalie hurried inside, packing essentials into a small rucksack. She had dreaded the day she would have to, and it was suddenly thrust upon her.

Quickly stuffing the rucksack full, she rushed outside within the promised minute, to find Mr Jackson and Monica, awake now, sitting on a bench, close to the car, talking.

Monica looked up and her eyes lit up as she spotted her mother.

"Mummy, what's going on?"

Oh the innocence. Why couldn't she be a few years older before this happened?

"It'll all be explained once we get there. Quick now, in the car." She said briskly before turning to Mr Jackson. "Thank you so much for your help. I'll bring her to Camp. She'll be safe there right?"

Mr Jackson nodded. "As safe as those like us can be…" He paused for a long while, nervously shuffling from one foot to the other. Natalie waited for him to say what was on his mind. "Actually, I was hoping to come with you. To Camp." He eventually got out.

"Are you sure?"

He nodded once more.

"Well then," she smiled, "hop in."

* * *

><p>Monica bounced restlessly in the back seat. The car ride was silent, with Mr Jackson staring out the window with a weird expression on his face and her mother not explaining what was going on or where they were going other than 'you're going to camp'. Whatever that meant. Her school camp was definitely not in this area.<p>

They slowed down, right in front of a white picket fence, with a sign that read:

'_Delphi Strawberry Service'_

'_Pick your own strawberries'_

Behind the fence was a small hill, and a pine tree sat atop, wrapped with what seemed to be a bunch of thick cables. A strawberry field was just visible to the side of the hill.

Monica groaned aloud. "Muuuuuum…" She whined. "I don't want to go to another farm camp. The last one was horrible!"

"Don't worry sweetie, it's not a farm camp. Just follow Mr Jackson and everything will make sense."

The two of them got out of the car, and began walking towards the hill. Monica suddenly realised her mother had not yet gotten out of the car.

"You're not coming mum?" She asked.

"I can't sweetie. But don't worry, I'm sure Mr Jackson will take care of you." At this she levelled a glare onto Mr Jackson. Unaffected, he just simply smiled and nodded.

"Take care Moni!" She called as she drove off.

The duo continued towards the tree, Monica a little more subdued and put out that her mother didn't accompany her. At least Mr Jackson was with her, even though he was almost a complete stranger. But her mum knew him, so she guessed he was trustworthy.

"Do you know what's going on Mr Jackson?" She questioned.

"It'll be all explained when we get there but…" he paused in thought. "Besides the three snake ladies chasing you today, has anything strange happened to you? When you were scared? Or angry?"

Now that Monica thought about it, there were occasions where strange things happened.

Mr Jackson's voice suddenly turned gruff and deep but his eyes lit up with humour. "Yer a wizard Harry."

Monica looked confused at him. "What?"

"Never mind… An book quote. But anyway, ever seen things moving in the corner of your eye but when you look at them, that you're never really sure if they even existed? Or impossible things suddenly becoming possible?"

"All of those things." Monica said quietly. "But what does that have to do with this?"

"Because you're not human." At her flabbergasted expression, he quickly amended. "Well, not fully at least. Well, half to be exact."

He coughed. "Perhaps that wasn't the best way to explain it… It's been a while since I've had to do this whole introduction thing. Well anyway, let's keep going."

"Let someone else do the explaining…" She could hear him mutter to himself.

Monica was left in his wake, mouth hanging open. "I- I'm not… human?"

Her thoughts were interrupted, when a roar shattered the air.

* * *

><p>"Monster! Monster at the border! Class 8 or 9!"<p>

"Send a team to Half-Blood Hill, just passed Thalia's tree! Be swift!"

"Alpha team! Move!"

"Gamma team! Provide assistance to Alpha if need be, otherwise watch and learn. You need some experience and see how things are handled before you guys are sent out."

Chiron looked up from his game of pinochle as the cries rang out across the camp. It was rather rare that monsters strayed close to the camp borders in recent years. Most knew that they would be hunted down and sent to Tartarus if they were spotted near the Camp.

The only reason that a monster would venture so close would be to chase a new camper entering, or if the monster was extremely powerful. Possibly both, if the Half-blood was unfortunate enough.

"I concede. The game goes to you Dionysus. I must attend to this new development that has arisen."

Mr D. grumbled at the interruption of their game. "I swear, I can never play a full game. It always ends prematurely."

Chiron ignored him in favour of slinging his bow and a quiver full of arrows onto his back. He galloped from the Big House, passing by rushing campers hurriedly preparing their gear, or racing to the cabins for safety.

He spotted an easily recognisable mop of blonde hair running towards Thalia's Tree. One of Athena's children. "Harrison!" He called out, slowing to a canter next to the teen. "What is the current situation?"

"Initial scout reports a Class 8, possibly 9, chasing a new demigod. Another figure was seen, standing aside, probably controlling the monster. Intel was unclear. Alpha has been dispatched and Gamma is watching for experience."

The categorisation of monsters was an initiative of Athena's children. It easily taught the younger campers what they could fight, and what they should run from. The combat teams were conceived from the minds of the children of Hermes and Ares. Quests were a rare occurrence now. Instead, reports from dryads and naiads of rampaging monsters were sent to either of the demigod camps, Camp Half-Blood or Camp Jupiter. Whichever received the request sent out response teams to tackle the problem.

"An excellent, swift response." Chiron complemented. "Hopefully we can get to the demigod before-" he was cut off as an earth shaking roar reverberated across Long Island. New York might have heard it too.

"We must hurry!"

Chiron effortlessly picked up Harrison and swung him onto his back, before galloping full speed to Thalia's Tree. Harrison have a small yelp of surprise. Chiron did not allow many campers to ride him, it was a very special privilege.

They got to the top of the hill just in time to see a massive, hulking silhouette smash the ground, and a much smaller figure just managing to roll out of the way. Another figure stood to the side, observing, making no move to help either combatant. The Alpha team was already moving down the hill in a cohesive unit. '_Testudo'_ formation, a technique shared by their Roman counterparts, and Gamma not far behind, observing.

Chiron too was observing, for now. The hulking silhouette possessed massive horns, and a large muscled human figure. A huge battleaxe, shaped in the form of the Greek letter Omega swung from its back, currently not in use.

"The Minotaur…" Harrison breathed from Chiron's back.

Chiron now looked to the demigod fighting for their life. Young, female. Nothing else remarkable could be discerned at this distance.

The other figure however…

"Come Harrison, we shall investigate the mystery man. Alpha team will take care of the Minotaur."

He was about to rush towards the mystery figure when he suddenly disappeared. Chiron could just make out his image rushing towards the Minotaur, a punch on the way to the tiring new demigod. A gleaming blade flashed, and the Minotaur's arm was severed, but the momentum still managed to land a grazing punch on the demigod's shoulder which sent her tumbling towards the oncoming Testudo formation with his immense strength.

Within a blink of an eye, the stranger disappeared again, moving with an almost inhuman speed. Just as Alpha managed to recover the new demigod, the Minotaur dissolved to dust, the mysterious stranger left standing behind where it used to be, a sword outstretched.

All the demigods assembled stared in shock at the ease that this stranger just dispatched the Minotaur with.

Chiron's eyes however, were locked onto the sword. A familiar Celestial Bronze straight blade.

The stranger swung the sword about a few times before it suddenly disappeared and the demigods muttering amongst themselves, unnerved by this new figure.

The stranger managed to take two steps towards them before the Alpha team retook their Testudo formation, spears bristling like an angry porcupine. A tribute to their rigorous training and gave credence to their elite status.

Chiron quickly set Harrison down from his back and interposed himself between the two sides.

"Demigods! Stand down!"

The spears were lowered, but the shield wall remained upright, protecting the medic who was attending to the young girl. The stranger continued to walk towards them however but made no aggressive movements, stopping just beside Chiron.

"Just please tell me Monica is alright." The voice was surprisingly elderly. Silence permeated the hillside.

"She's fine." The field medic spoke up. "Unconscious but nothing broken. just going to be some heavy bruising."

The stranger nodded in relief. Chiron turned to him with a beaming smile. He bowed deeply, to the surprise of the assembled demigods behind him.

"Welcome home, Perseus Jackson, Son of Poseidon, Defender and Hero of Olympus."

* * *

><p>Monica's eyes fluttered open. She was lying on something soft. She attempted to sit up, but hissed when her shoulder flared up in pain. Almost instantly, a beautiful young woman appeared by her side.<p>

"Hey, take it easy," she said soothingly. Her long black hair tied into a messy bun and striking grey eyes, looking at her with concern. "You took a pretty bad beating on your shoulder. By the Minotaur from what I've heard. I'm surprised you're alive to be honest."

Monica tried to say something. But her throat was parched. Before she could do anything, a glass of what looked like apple juice was thrust in her face.

"Here, drink this, it'll make you feel better."

Monica nodded her thanks, and took a large gulp. She almost choked. The apple juice wasn't apple juice, but instead tasked like her favourite mango-coconut ice cream that she always got when shopping with her mother at the mall. It was _wonderful_. The entire glass was quickly drained, the young woman looked on amused at her eagerness. Monica blushed with embarrassment and grinned sheepishly.

"It tasted nice… And thank you." She croaked out.

"Your welcome." The woman replied with a smile. "I'm Maya by the way. Maya Jackson. And this is Camp Half-Blood's hospital ward. What's your name?"

"Monica. Monica Sommersby. Are you related to Mr Jackson?"

A single sleek eyebrow was raised. "You're going to have to be a bit more specific than a 'Mr Jackson'. I'm sure there are millions out there." She grinned wryly.

Monica's cheeks reddened once again. "Umm…" She tried to remember the old man's name. "Percy? Percy Jackson I think."

"Mhmm… Sure am related. He's my father."

Monica looked mostly surprised. "But you don't look like…" She trailed off.

Maya laughed good-naturedly. "I get that a lot. Most of my looks comes from my mother, Annabeth Jackson. She passed away a few years ago though. But my dad doesn't like talking about it. It's still a sore spot for him. They were blessed by Aphrodite you know. Not many couples are. They had a real special bond between them."

"A-Aphrodite?" Monica asked, confused. "But isn't she a Greek god?"

"Ah, you haven't been inducted yet. "Maya nodded in understanding. "But yes, that's exactly what she is. You'll find out soon enough."

"Sommersby… Your mother wouldn't happen to be Natalie would it?"

Monica looked at her in shock. "How do you know my mum?"

"Eh, not so much, but my elder sister is best friends with your mother. She used to come over to our house all the time to hang out. But my sister isn't at Camp anymore. Left to explore other countries she said." She grinned. "Small world eh?"

"I'm glad you two are getting along." A voice called out. Monica looked to the source and saw Mr Jackson standing in the doorway.

"Dad!" Maya squealed, bounding towards her father and engulfing in a hug. Mr Jackson laughed and hugged her back.

"Good to see you again Maya. It's been quite a while. And look how you've grown!" He turned to Monica. "And you, Ms Sommersby, I need to apologise. You are a brave little girl, taking on the Minotaur. I'm sorry about your shoulder. To be honest, I wanted to see how you did against the Minotaur, a test if you will, and I wasn't fast enough to stop it." He hung his head

Monica pouted at being called a little girl, but smiled nonetheless.

"It's ok."

But before she could say anything else, a man on a horse entered the hospital ward. No, not on a horse, attached to one… Like a-

"A centaur, indeed Ms Sommersby. I see you are somewhat fluent with Greek Mythology. I am Chiron." He inclined his head to her.

Monica just gaped, a mystical creature from storybooks and fairy tales was talking to her.

Chiron turned to Maya. "Is she adequately healed to be moved? It is best to introduce her as soon as possible."

Maya looked thoughtful for a moment. "It's only severe bruising on her shoulder. As long as nothing contacts it, and she keeps it in a sling, she should be fine to walk."

Chiron turned back to Monica. "Come then child, let's get you all sorted out."

After arranging a sling for her shoulder and arm, she followed Chiron out of the hospital. Maya and Mr Jackson trailing slightly behind.

She gazed out over the field. 'Camp Half-Blood' Maya had called it. She spied a lake, with canoes rowing across. A rock climbing wall, and- _did that just pour down lava?_ 'O...k… Seems a little intense…' She thought.

An archery range, stables. And what she guessed to be cabins, arranged in the shape of an Omega and hundreds of teens milling about.

They arrived at a big blue house, where a man in a tiger-patterned Hawaiian shirt sat sipping from a glass of Coke.

He looked down is red nose at the oncoming entourage. "Aha, so this is Monique Summerbee I presume."

"Umm… It's Monica Sommersby" she said meekly.

The man waved a dismissive hand. "Yes, yes whatever."

Chiron spoke up, "Monica, this is Mr D, the camp director. Let's get started on the Orientation."

* * *

><p>"You're taking all this remarkably well." Maya commented after dinner.<p>

Monica just shrugged. "It explains a lot of previously unexplainable things, so I guess it just fills in the blanks I suppose."

"Much better than me I'll tell you that! Took me a few days of being in denial" Mr Jackson laughed. They were sitting in the Amphitheatre, around the blazing campfire, waiting as campers trickled in.

Once everyone settled in, Chiron stamped his hoof on the hard stone three times, and all the demigods quietened immediately.

"As many of you are aware, we recovered another demigod. Welcome Monica Sommersby." Maya helped her to stand, to the applause of the camp. She blushed heavily at being the centre of attention.

"Currently unclaimed but-"

A collective gasp echoed around the Amphitheatre. She looked confused. Had she done something wrong? She just stood up, and Maya's insistence as well. That was until she noticed an ethereal green glow on the campers' faces nearest to her, emanating from-

She quickly look up, to see a glimpse of a glowing floating trident, before it disappeared.

There was a silence, so thick she felt like she could touch it before Chiron broke it.

"All Hail, Monica Sommersby, Daughter of Poseidon!"

* * *

><p>A hand landed on her head as she unpacked her bag within the Poseidon cabin, and she looked up to see Mr Jackson's smiling visage.<p>

"I guess that makes us siblings, eh?"

"And you're my aunt now!" Maya exclaimed. "I have to say, it's pretty weird having an aunt that's a good two decades younger than me" she joked, grinning down at her.

Monica smiled, her new family wasn't so bad. If only her mother were here, she'd be the happiest girl in the world, surrounded by family.

* * *

><p><strong>OMAKE by me<strong>

Swordfighting class

The students muttered amongst themselves at the presence of an old man with their instructor.

"Afternoon all," Oliver Delim, Son of Hermes greeted his 5th year class, consisting of mostly 16-18 year olds. "Today, we have a very, _very_ special guest to instruct you for today. Mr Per-"

"What good is an old man gonna do to teach us sword fighting? How to use a sword as a walking stick?" Tony Pettis, Son of Ares, guffawed at his own joke, a small group of campers around him laughing harshly along. He was the best sword fighter in his age group, making him even more arrogant on top of his inborn arrogance due to his parentage.

Oliver cringed at the insult to, probably the most powerful demigod to ever exist. They were all told stories of Percy Jackson and his partner and later wife, Annabeth Chase. Of the amazing achievements they've accomplished. But Tony didn't know who he was taking to. Oliver never got to finish his introduction of Mr Jackson.

"I'm sorry Mr Ja-"

Percy waved a hand. "It's fine."

He turned to the boy who spoke out. "And you are…?"

The boy puffed out his chest. "Tony Pettis. Son of Ares, best sword fighter in camp." He was pushing it with that statement. There were a number of better fighters than him at camp, but this stupid old man didn't need to know that. He was probably weak, and was probably going to lecture them this whole lesson or something. What Tony failed to realise, is that to live to an old age as a demigod, even in recent years with better technology and safety, was a rare occasion. One had to be quick, smart, agile, cunning and powerful to live to an old age.

"Come here Tony." Percy said. He'd seen these types of people and knew how to deal with them. It was like dealing with Clarisse all over again when Percy first joined camp. Tony jumped from his spot in the stands and stood in front of him.

"Best sword fighter you say? Well then. Come kill me."

Gasps rang out.

Tony gave an arrogant snort as he drew his sword. "Piece of cake."

Percy let a smirk bleed into his face.

Tony took a swing at Percy's head, only to swing at nothing but air he Percy leaned back a fraction of an inch, letting the blade pass just in front of his face.

The students were shocked. It was clearly a calculated move, minimal action for maximum effect and maximum efficiency.

Tony grunted angrily and swung again and again at Percy. Each time, Percy moved the slightest amount and the sword passed a hair's breadth from him, the smirk still plastered on his face. He still hadn't even draw Riptide. Tony was getting frustrated now, his face burned an angry red as he breathed harshly after swinging at nothing for the past few minutes.

"Aren't you going to fight back!" He shouted angrily.

Percy shrugged. "If you insist."

Tony prepared himself, but it was futile. Faster than he could react, or even see, a foot slammed into his wrist forcing him to drop his sword, hissing in pain.

A fist grabbed the back of his shirt, and his legs have way as they were kicked from behind, forcing him to his knees. His discarded sword was flicked up with deft footwork and caught by Percy's leg, holding it in between his thigh and calf, the blade resting on Tony's collarbone, against his neck. He gulped nervously. The blade rested there for a few seconds to let the message sink in. Percy flicked the sword up before _kicking it back into its sheath_ at Tony's side. Tony gulped at the skill and precision demonstrated by that single move alone.

Percy turned to the class.

"Anyone else have a problem with 'an old man' teaching you?" He smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. His intense sea green eyes burned with power and decades of experience.

* * *

><p><strong>A bit disappointed. There isn't even any fluff... and in my opinion poorly written story with Natalie and Monica's backstory and what not, but whatever. It is as it is.<strong>

**Favourite, follow, review. I like all of those things.**

**~Matanator**


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